balls and michelle norris. that's all for today, did gregory will be back next week, if it's sunday, it's "meet the press." wall of destruction, the death toll soars from japan's twin disasters as authorities race to head off nuclear meltdowns. shock waves, the situation in japan raises fears over the safety of nuclear power plants here at home. and whiteout, a late winter blizzard leaves hundreds of motorists stranded in north dakota. good morning, those stories and more straight ahead, this is first look on msnbc.

and we begin this morning with a country in crisis, in japan this morning, rescuers are searching for signs of life beneath the rubble as the clock ticks in the wake of friday's epic disaster. japanese please say they've recovered another 1,000 bodies that washed ashore along the miyagi coast, rising a mounting death toll that is believed to be above 10,000, nbc's kristen dahlgren joins us from tokyo with more. >> reporter: there have been more than 300 aftershocks registered here there were new warnings today. and now growing concerns over the possibility of a nuclear accident. with heavy equipment, and bare hands, rescue workers continue the desperate search for survivors. but virtually every piece of debris that's moved away reveals an increasingly grim scene.

erp terp my relatives and friends are missing after the tsunami destroyed the village. they were all washed away. >> reporter: in one area, reports of some 2,000 bodies found. the unofficial count, more than 10,000 still missing. and for survivors of the quake, surviving the aftermath is proving just as challenging. as temperatures dip below freezing, there is no food, no water, no electricity, not even gas to make it to safety. the sirens still sound as aftershocks and more tsunami warnings bring fresh panic. and then there's this -- another hydrogen explosion, this time, in the number three reactor at the fukushima daichi nuclear plant. officials say the plant can no longer cool itself. for so many already dealing with so much, it's just one more reason to fear surviving the quake was just the start. and we've now gotten late word about the number two reactor at

the plant, it is reportedly now losing coolant. bringing fresh concerns over its stability. meantime, "the new york times" is reporting that the u.s. pentagon is reporting that the "uss ronald reagan" traveled through a radioactive cloud and crew on deck are believed to have received a month's worth of radiation in an hour. meanwhile, experts are weighing in on the potential impact at home if a disaster as devastating as the one that hit japan were to hit quake-prone areas here. for that we go to tracey potts. >> reporter: the obama administration wants to build more nuclear facilities here in the united states. but japan's atomic emergency has some here on capitol hill here concerned. >> to put the brakes on right now until we understand the ramifications of what's happened in japan. >> there are 104 nuclear plants in the u.s., about a quarter designed like those under a

state of emergency in japan. the nuclear regulatory commission insists each american plant is built to withstand the most severe shock. at least four more are on the drawing board. president obama is asking for $36 billion next year to build even more. but in light of the explosions in japan, some on capitol hill want to take it slow. >> we have to listen to what is happening in japan and protect ourselves and our people. >> with 20 applications pending, some lawmakers now suggest holding off building any nuclear facilities near major fault lines. >> i don't think right after a major environmental catastrophe is a very good time to be making american domestic policy. >> reporter: rescue teams and supplies are arriving in japan, the needs now even more severe. tens of thousands were evacuated near the reactors, dozens are being treated for exposure to radiation. could some of that radiation make its way to the united states at harmful levels.

the nuclear regulatory commission says no. images are emerging from the east coast of japan's main island, where millions of people are without power and drinking water. correspondent walker from our english broadcasting partner, itn, has this report from a town where almost every structure has been washed away. >> translator: the place where the clocks have stopped. the time where the tsunami struck, flattening this fishing village. the wave sliced off roofs, left this building on the roof of a car. this is one of the fishing villages along the east coast near the city of sendai, which took the real force of the tsunami. i'm standing in what's left of someone's home. just the foundations. the water picked the whole house up and dumped it behind me.

all that's left is that pile of broken timber. the sea wall offered little protection. the water had been channelled into an inlet. its force concentrated. this 82-year-old man told me the water had burst down an alleyway into his home. we left him, picking through a lifetime of belongings. i walked a mile inland. even here, the water had scattered cars. look how this car has ended up, and you can see how deep the water had been. even this far from the sea. an oil depot, alight for two days is left to burn. locals say fire crews can't get access to put it out. shortages are bringing the city of sendai to a standstill, petrol queues stretch for miles. water mains are cracked. people bring what they can to fill up at stand pipes. and supermarkets set up shop in car parks.

rationing what they have left. this 72-year-old woman told me her house had been flooded. she had nothing left. this evening, smoke hangs over the city. like a shadow. angus walker, itv news, sendai, japan. here's your first look at other news going on around america today. in north dakota, a fast-moving blizzard left hundreds of drivers stranded along the state's highways. officials say between 800 and 900 people were rescued from hundreds of cars after ice, snow and 60-mile-p-hour winds combined to produce whiteout conditions. tow trucks and the national guard were enlisted to remove 500 abandoned cars. in wisconsin, a couple of drivers found out they parked in the wrong spot. after a massive sinkhole swallowed two cars. officials say the ten-foot-deep, 625 square-foot hole was caused

by a water main break. city crews are working to keep the hole from widening. in pennsylvania, one group of teens is using facebook to help avoid prom dress disaster. the girls are posting photos of their prom dresses on a page called please don't buy my dress. dozens have posted pictures of their elegant gowns, hoping to insure that no two dresses are alike on the biggest night of their young lives. now for a look at the national weather we turn to nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. and bill, women in general need a group facebook page called, what are you going to wear tonight? >> it's every girl's nightmare, going to the prom and her friend or someone else has the same dress. i don't know about everyone else, but the time change is rough this morning. the sun didn't set until very late and it's a rising a little later this morning.

so as far as this morning goes, if you're traveling in missouri, that's probably the worst of it. and in arkansas you have some rain. in the east coast we're relatively dry, but the storm that's now in the middle of the country will spread a lot of clouds our way. especially this afternoon. high pressure protect florida from what should be a gorgeous day there, temperatures in the low 80s. a little chilly in northern new england and we're a little cool in the northern plains. so the travel trouble spot, we had snow overnight in kansas city, maybe enough to did a little shoveling and it's snowing pretty good from out towards topeka to manhattan, kansas and we're starting to get reports of heavy snow around columbia and even in st. louis, reports of sleet and snow mixing in. that's the trouble spot. maybe some minor airport delays this morning in st. louis and then it should clear out. heavy rain to the south down in springfield. remember on the radar, the white is the snow, the green and the yellows are the rainfall, and the rainfall rates. further south, it's all rain in arkansas. that line is about to go through little rock.

eventually this afternoon, memphis, you'll need the umbrella, too. and over the next 48 hours, remember the last couple of rainstorms we had? they were just huge rain events on the east coast. this is not setting up like that. this is about half offensive to an inch. the yellow and orange. is two to three inches. south of st. louis is the only spot we could see significant rain. the forecast for today, the wintry mess in missouri. texas, okay, a little cool in dallas in the low 60s. from new orleans to florida, looking fantastic. spring break season down there. in the mid-atlantic. it is dry today. veronica, i think the best news in the forecast -- even in new york and new england, as we head towards st. patrick's day, we could see temperatures in the 60s. so, yeah, we'll take a peek at that coming up. >> i've got my pom-poms, right here. >> they better be green. the fallout from japan's earthquake will affect wall street. oil does a u-turn and new leaked documents on bank of america. your first look at this

morning's business headlines is straight ahead. first for dwight howard, the bucks hit a new low, plus grab a pen and fill out the bracket. march madness is here. you're watching fist look on msnbc. what can you do with plain mashed potatoes? when you pour chunky beef with country vegetable soup over it, you can do dinner. 4 minutes, around 4 bucks. campbell's chunky. it's amazing what soup can do.™

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welcome back to "first look," i'm veronica dela cruz, here are some top stories making news this morning, yesterday moammar gadhafi's forcers took over a key town and vowed to press east toward the main opposition city of benghazi. this as secretary of state hillary clinton is due to meet in paris today with rebel leaders pressing for a no-fly zone over the country. the white house is condemning violence in yemen, and bahrain this morning. urging governments in both countries to show restraint. yesterday, in yemen, police fired tear gas and live rounds at anti-government protesters, wounding at least 100. in bahrain, police clashed with thousands of demonstrators demanding the kingdom's monarchy

give up power. and new zealand's prime minister has rejected a chinese request for additional compensation for parents who lost children in last month's earthquake in christchurch. seven chinese students are confirmed dead with over 20 still missing. and scientists say japan's earthquake object friday was so strong it moved the main island eight feet east and sped up the earth's rotation by 1.6 microseconds, making the day just a little bit shorter. for more on the tragedy, including startling before and after satellite images, head to msnbc.com. here's your "first look" at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 12,044. the s&p added nine points, the nasdaq was up 14. overseas trading, in tokyo a rough day for the nikkei, losing a whopping 633 points.

but in hong kong, the hang seng rose 96. well, given the vast extent of last week's earthquake in japan, not surprisingly companies that do business there, as well as nuclear-related businesses look to be the most vulnerable this week on wall street. tokyo's stock market spiralled downward. japan's central bank has injected a record 15 trillion yen, $183 billion into money markets to try to defend japan's already-fragile economy. keep an eye on the nation's two biggest nuclear operators, exelon and enter g and watch shares of top uranium miners. edison international and pg & e which operate plants in california also may be in play. and expect u.s.-listed shares of japanese companies like auto manufactures, toyota and honda, which have shut down

many of their japanese factories to trade lower. and companies like aig and ace limited could be hit again today. one estimate puts the total of insured losses from the quake at $35 billion. and then, there is still oil. overnight in asian trade, oil fell sharply. on investor pessimism that global economic growth will slow thanks to the disaster in japan. finally, a hacker group sympathetic to wikileaks plans to release emails obtained from bank of america it claims will expose corruption and fraud at america's largest bank. in health news this morning, researchers say the strong painkiller high droe co-doan, commonly seld as vicodin may be safe for women nursing newborns, they found a relatively small fraction of the drug ended up in mother's milk and say it may be acceptable for a nursing mother to take up to six, 5-milligram

tablets a day. for more on this and other health stories, check out the health page online at msnbc.com. orlando sees the light, a dark day for milwaukee and the pacers knock off an old rival. plus it was a weekend of buzzer-beaters in college hoops, ushering in march madness. your first look at sports is straight ahead. you're watching "first look."

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look." in sports, productivity is about to go down in offices around the country this week. because so many people will be filling out thundershower ncaa brackets. here's nbc's mario solis. >> good morning, start filling out those brackets, pick up your upsets and let the madness begin, the field is set for the ncaa tournament. before the 68 teams were announced, there were conference championships to be won. let's start in the big ten, top-ranked ohio state keeping things rolling against penn state. the buckeyes locked up the number one seed overall in the tournament with a win over the illini 71-60. their second straight big ten title. a classic acc championship, duke and north carolina, nolan smith leading the way for the blue devils, he had 20 points, plus ten dimes, duke wins it, 75-58. they're the top seed in the west. the other top seeds are kansas in the southwest and pitt in the southeast. and for the first time ever, there are four playing games, they'll be played tomorrow and wednesday night.

nba, the only thing uglier than this guy's hat was the way the knicks played against the pacers. daunte jones pick-pockets chauncey billups, and alley-oop, and tyler hansbrough took a bite out of the big apple, a career high 29 points. pacers end their skid, 106-93. if the knicks play was ugly, the bucks were unwatchable. the celtics held them to a franchise low 56 points in boston. milwaukee scored just nine points in the first quarter, 22 in the half. the celtics won 87-56. dwight howard has been in the league seven seasons, but has never won in phoenix. the magic had not won in the desert in ten years, but that changed yesterday. howard played three-quarters, he had 26 and 15 boards, 111-88. that's your first look at sports. for a quick look at the weather, here's bill cairns with

a first look at the weather. you've got your brackets, right? >> yes, i don't know how i'm going to play it. are you going to fill one out? >> no, one year i played fantasy football and that was enough for me. >> this is easier than that. let's talk about this morning's forecast. we're going to continue with some cool weather. grab the winter coast and the gloves, especially in areas of new england. it's not the warmest of mornings from philly to d.c., temperatures in the 30s. there's a little breeze. now near buffalo, you've got some white stuff flying this morning. a little shot of snow for you. just a little coating. shust cause too many issues, but with temperatures in the 20s, it will be sticking. that's a little area of snow, not going to cause too many issues today, the sun, this times of year it will warm you up. so even though we're cold this morning, we'll be around 50 degrees from d.c. to new york. from the 40s from providence to hartford. around the country today,

there's not too much bad weather. looking forward in boston, st. patrick's day, veronica. 52 and sunny on thursday, so there's a lot of great weather for st. patrick's day, new york and chicago look good, too. >> perfect, bill. a bundle on the weigh for the beckhams, plus aliens invade the box office and capture the title of this week's top film. your first look at entertainment is straight ahead. you're watching "first look." some models look so mad.

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welcome back to "first look." time now for your first look at entertainment news. one new release played strongly at the box office this weekend and the others, not so strongly. the summer blockbuster, "battle

los angeles" performed like a blockbuster opening in the top spot in the section week out, the animated western spoof, "rango" showed surprising strength, coming in second with $23 million. but the good news ended there, "red riding hood" debuted weakly in third. with $14 million. and things went even worse for the animated 3-d family film, "mars needs moms" opening in fifth place. way below expectations with less than $7 million despite opening on more than 200 pricey eye max screens. and finally, team beckham is adding a girl. after three sons, david beckham and his wife learned that they will be having a daughter this summer. congratulations to them. and hang on, bill, help me out here. so far they have romeo, cruz and brooklyn and i know you started a petition saying they should

not name this child apple. >> that one has already been used, unfortunately. >> i know that it is your all-time favorite name. >> maybe they'll go for a traditional name this time. >> what about manhattan, if they have a brooklyn. or even a juliet? >> i think someone used bronx recently, i don't know who it was. >> i'm veronica dela cruz, this is "first look." stay tuned, because willie geist starts right now. the question is, will officials be able to prevent the possibility of a catastrophic nuclear meltdown. meanwhile, the death toll continues to rise, as the japanese turn their attention to the growing humanitarian crisis. the question is, how is aid getting to the people who need water, food and heat. and japan's market nosedives as investors struggle to assess the impact the quake is having on the world's third-largest economy. the question is what will it